The Strongest With Nothing Left

General Venkur, who had been standing near the doorway watching the heartwarming moment, couldn't help but smirk. His arms were crossed as he leaned against the wall, his eyes fixed on Li Vrak.

"...Good to see you back to your old self, buddy." Venkur finally spoke, his voice filled with genuine relief and happiness.

Li's head immediately snapped toward Venkur, his expression shifting into his usual deadpan glare. "...Tch."

Without missing a beat, Li responded coldly, "Shut it, piss boy."

he entire room went dead silent for a brief moment.

"...P-Piss boy?" Venkur stammered, his eyes widening in disbelief. "Did you just—"

Arin, Mia, and Elise immediately exploded into laughter.

"PFFFT—HAHAHAHA!!" Arin was clutching his stomach, tears forming in his eyes. "W-What kind of nickname is that!?"

Mia was bent over, struggling to breathe. "Piss boy!? OH MY GOD—HAHA!!"

Even Elise, who usually kept her composure, was laughing so hard she had to cover her mouth. "D-Don't tell me... you used to call him that before!?"

Li, without missing a beat, said coldly. "First time we encountered a demon... you pissed yourself."

"OI!!" Venkur practically screamed. Arin and Mia immediately burst out into uncontrollable laughter.

"PFFT—BAHAHAHA! HE PEED HIMSELF!?" Arin clutched his stomach, gasping for air. "W-WAIT, GENERAL VENKUR DID WHAT!?"

Mia was dying from laughter. "OH MY GOD—THAT'S GOLDEN!!"

Even Elise, who was trying her best to stay professional, was covering her mouth, hiding her snickering.

"I WAS JUST A KID!!" Venkur protested. "WE WERE 14 AND THAT DEMON WAS HUGE!!"

Li shrugged, his tone flat. "Still pissed yourself."

"WHY ARE YOU STILL BRINGING THAT UP!? IT'S BEEN DECADES!!" Venkur was on the verge of exploding.

Elise, trying to hold herself together, gasped. "S-So the mighty General Venkur... once peed himself in front of a demon...?"

"IT WAS A ONE-TIME THING!!" Venkur screamed, his face flushed with pure embarrassment.

Li simply shrugged. "Doesn't change the fact you earned that name."

"LI, YOU TRAITOR!!" Venkur's voice cracked as he pointed at him. "I TRUSTED YOU BACK THEN! AND NOW YOU HUMILIATE ME IN FRONT OF EVERYONE!?"

Li, still maintaining his deadpan tone, responded. "I never promised I'd keep it a secret."

"I'LL KILL YOU!!" Venkur lunged at him, but Li effortlessly stepped aside, making Venkur stumble forward.

Arin, Mia, and Elise were absolutely dying of laughter.

"...Man." Venkur finally exhaled, his face still beet red. "...You really are back to your old self, huh?" His tone shifted to something softer. "Seeing you joke around like this... It's been too damn long."

Li's smirk softened, and he glanced at Venkur. "...Yeah." His voice was genuine. "It's good to be back."

But before Venkur could say anything sentimental—

"Still pissed yourself though." Li casually added.

"I'M GONNA STRANGLE YOU!!" Venkur roared, causing another wave of uncontrollable laughter from everyone.

Li Vrak let out a small groan as he got up from the bed, stretching his body after days of being unconscious. His muscles were still sore, but it wasn't something he couldn't handle. After all, he's been through worse.

As he lazily turned his head, he spotted Venkur, who was still sulking in the corner from earlier embarrassment.

"...Hey, Venkur." Li called out, his voice casual.

"...Huh? What now?" Venkur grumbled, still salty about being called Piss Boy.

Li ignored his tone and asked, "...You still kept the bracer I gave you to hold onto years ago?"

Venkur immediately raised a brow. "...The bracer?" He scratched his head, trying to remember. "...Oh, you mean that weird-looking one you handed me like... what, 9 years ago?"

Li nodded. "Yeah. That one. You still have it?"

Venkur gave him a confused look. "...Yeah, it's in the kingdom's storage. But why the hell are you asking about it now?"

Li simply shrugged. "...I kinda need it back."

Venkur raised a brow. "...Why? It's just a bracer that increases the weight of whatever item it's attached to, right?"

Li looked at him, confused. "...Yeah? So why the hell did you put it in the kingdom's storage?"

Venkur scratched his head. "...Well, it's not every day someone hands you a bracer that weighs hundreds of kilograms. I mean, the royal mage inspected it and basically said it was cursed or something."

Li raised a brow. "...It's not cursed. It's literally just a bracer meant for weight training."

Venkur scoffed. "...Weight training? Li, that thing weighs like a damn boulder. Normal people can't even lift it, and you were wearing that thing like it was nothing. Do you know how concerning that is?"

Li sighed. "...It's enchanted to increase the weight for training purposes, that's literally it. I don't get why you put it in storage."

Venkur laughed awkwardly. "...Well, the royal mage freaked out when I handed it over, thinking it was some ancient cursed artifact, and I just kinda... agreed and locked it up."

Li facepalmed. "...You're an idiot."

Venkur shrugged. "...And you're insane for using that thing daily like it's normal. Seriously, Li. That bracer was so heavy that even placing it on the ground cracked the stone floor."

Li exhaled sharply. "...Just get me my bracer back."

Venkur smirked. "...You sure you still need it? You're already a monster without it."

Li shot him a glare. "...I just want it back."

Venkur chuckled. "...Fine, fine. I'll get it for you."

Venkur came back after a while, carrying the pair of bracers in his hands, visibly struggling as he stumbled toward Li. "...H-Here... these damn things are still ridiculously heavy..."

Li effortlessly grabbed the bracers from Venkur, who looked like his arms were about to give out. "...Seriously, how did you wear these things like they're nothing?"

Li ignored the question and turned towards Arin, who was standing nearby, confused. "...Arin, come here."

Arin walked over without hesitation. "Yes, Master?"

Without any warning, Li suddenly grabbed Arin's wrist and slammed the bracer onto it. "Here. Wear this."

Arin blinked, confused. "...Huh? Wha—"

THUD!

The moment the bracer locked onto Arin's wrist, his entire body collapsed to the ground, his knee hitting the floor hard as he barely stopped himself from faceplanting. His arm was yanked down with immense force as his eyes widened in disbelief.

"...W-WHAT THE HELL?!" Arin shouted in shock, struggling just to move his arm.

Arin gritted his teeth, using all his strength just to get on one knee, his arm shaking violently. "...W-What is this thing, Master?! This thing is insanely heavy!"

Li, with a deadpan tone, simply replied. "...Weight training."

Arin's jaw dropped. "...W-WEIGHT TRAINING?! HOW IS THIS EVEN REMOTELY PRACTICAL?!"

Li kneeled down to his level, his face completely unfazed. "...If you can move as fast as you normally do with that bracer, you'll be twice as fast without it. It's simple logic."

Arin still struggled, his face dripping with sweat just from trying to stand. "...I-I can't even stand with this thing on!"

Li grabbed the second bracer from Venkur, who was still chuckling in the background. Without hesitation, Li slapped the second bracer onto Arin's other wrist.

"W-WAIT, MASTER NO—"

Arin's entire body collapsed to the ground, his arms pinned like anchors as his body struggled to even push itself up. "...Y-YOU'RE KIDDING ME!!"

Venkur was howling with laughter. "PFFT—HAHAHA! This is cruel, Li! The kid can't even move!"

Li simply stood back up and crossed his arms. "...Adapt. Once you do, I'll increase the weight."

Arin looked at Li with pure horror. "...I-I have to ADAPT TO THIS?!"

Li finally smirked. "...Yes. Consider this your next stage of training."

Venkur, still laughing, patted Arin on the shoulder. "...Kid, I genuinely feel sorry for you."

Li, without even looking at Venkur, casually said, "...Don't be. Just watch."

Venkur, still snickering, raised a brow. "...Hah? Watch what? The kid struggle to stand—"

But then it happened.

Arin, who was still on the ground, gritting his teeth, suddenly pushed himself up. His arms trembled violently, his veins bulging from the sheer strain of the bracers' immense weight. "...Nngh...C-Come on...!"

Venkur's smile froze. "...Huh?"

Arin's legs were shaking, his hands clenched into fists as he slowly...but surely...rose to his feet. His breathing was heavy, sweat dripping from his face, but his eyes burned with determination. "...Hah...Hah...I-I can do this..."

Venkur blinked in disbelief. "...Y-You're kidding me... he's already standing?

Li simply smirked. "...I told you. Just watch."

Arin staggered a bit, his knees threatening to buckle under the immense weight, but he clenched his jaw. "...No...If Master can handle this...then I can too...!"

His foot slammed against the ground, forcing his stance to stabilize. He stomped down again, and this time, his knees didn't buckle.

"...H-Holy crap..." Venkur muttered in disbelief. "...He's adapting already...?"

Li finally turned his gaze towards Arin, his smirk faint but noticeable. "...Good. You're doing better than I expected."

Arin, still struggling but now able to move slightly, looked up with a strained grin. "...Y-You expected less from me, Master...?"

Li scoffed. "...No. I expected you to at least collapse for half an hour. You've proven me wrong."

Arin couldn't tell if that was a compliment or not, but it fueled his willpower. Slowly, he began to take small steps, his muscles screaming from the sheer force required to simply move his legs.

Venkur, still wide-eyed, leaned towards Li. "...Oi, Li. Be honest... those bracers are absurd. If he manages to fully move around with those on, won't his strength and speed skyrocket?"

Li nodded, his expression still neutral. "...Exactly. That's why I gave it to him now. He's already near S-rank... but now he'll break that limit."

Venkur looked back at Arin, who was now managing to move around in short bursts, his body visibly struggling — but he wasn't giving up.

"...Damn...that kid's a monster in the making." Venkur muttered.

Li smirked slightly, his voice low. "...He already is."